grinch | global report investigating novel coronavirus haplotypes

B.1.1.7 report 2021-01-20



Data source and processing

This report is recent as of 2021-01-20 13:46 GMT. All SARS-CoV-2 sequences were downloaded from GISAID and genomes were de-duplicated based on GISAID sequence name – note that the publically available metadata may not fully allow us to de-duplicate by patient. Full data processing pipeline found here.

The sequences were then assigned lineages with pangolin v2.1.7, pangoLEARN version 2021-01-11.

Pangolin assigns B.1.1.7 to sequences with more than 4 of the 17 defining B.1.1.7 SNPs – defined here

Table 1 | Summary of sequence data

Lineage Country count Country Sequence count Earliest sequence Travel history
B.1.1.7 41 UK 20832, Denmark 318, Netherlands 95, Israel 89, USA 85, Belgium 83, Italy 82, Ireland 80, Portugal 73, Spain 70, Finland 40, Australia 31, France 26, Switzerland 24, Slovakia 22, Turkey 21, Iceland 21, Norway 20, India 20, Singapore 18, New_Zealand 17, Sweden 15, Germany 12, Brazil 5, Hungary 5, Greece 4, Ecuador 4, Jamaica 4, Hong_Kong 3, South_Korea 3, Luxembourg 3, Pakistan 2, Oman 1, Lebanon 1, Mexico 1, Romania 1, Canada 1, Sri_Lanka 1, Peru 1, Iran 1, Argentina 1 22136 2020-09-20 15 UK;

Lineage B.1.1.7

Caveat: Most locations outside the original focus have not reported sustained transmission and many cases have known travel links to the focal location. Increasing numbers of international cases is currently likely due to increased surveillance and vigilance.

Table B.1.1.7 | Lineage B.1.1.7

Statistic Information
Sequence count 22136
Countries with sequences 41
Countries reported 58
Likely origin United Kingdom
SNPs aa:orf1ab:T1001I
aa:orf1ab:A1708D
aa:orf1ab:I2230T
del:11288:9
del:21765:6
del:21991:3
aa:S:N501Y
aa:S:A570D
aa:S:P681H
aa:S:T716I
aa:S:S982A
aa:S:D1118H
aa:Orf8:Q27*
aa:Orf8:R52I
aa:Orf8:Y73C
aa:N:D3L
aa:N:S235F

Figure 1 | Cumulative sequence count over time B.1.1.7

2021-01-20T14:18:22.399897 image/svg+xml Matplotlib v3.3.3, https://matplotlib.org/

Figure 2 | Date of earliest B.1.1.7 detected

2021-01-20T14:18:20.295064 image/svg+xml Matplotlib v3.3.3, https://matplotlib.org/

Figure 3 | Map of B.1.1.7 sequence counts

2021-01-20T14:18:20.659733 image/svg+xml Matplotlib v3.3.3, https://matplotlib.org/

Figure 4 | Sequence count per country B.1.1.7

2021-01-20T14:18:21.127924 image/svg+xml Matplotlib v3.3.3, https://matplotlib.org/

Figure 5 | Frequency B.1.1.7 in sequences produced since first new variant reported per country

2021-01-20T14:18:22.857600 image/svg+xml Matplotlib v3.3.3, https://matplotlib.org/

Figure 6 | B.1.1.7 count per continent

2021-01-20T14:18:23.574049 image/svg+xml Matplotlib v3.3.3, https://matplotlib.org/

Figure 7 | Rolling average B.1.1.7 frequency per continent

2021-01-20T14:18:23.309147 image/svg+xml Matplotlib v3.3.3, https://matplotlib.org/

Figure 8 | Map of B.1.1.7 local transmission

2021-01-20T14:18:18.956175 image/svg+xml Matplotlib v3.3.3, https://matplotlib.org/

Figure 9 | Air traffic from UK by destination

The number of ticketed origin-to-destination journeys from London airports to countries outside the United Kingdom during October 2020.

Colours indicate numbers of published genomes of B.1.1.7 deposited on GISAID. Grey bars indicate countries that have reported the presence of the variant but have not yet published B.1.1.7 sequences on GISAID. White bars indicate countries with no reports of B.1.1.7.

Flight data come from the International Air Transportation Association that capture anonymized, passenger-level flight itinerary data, comprising both commercial flights and scheduled charter flights. These data account for ~90% of global air travel volumes, with the remaining volumes modelled using market intelligence. We report data from destinations including >5,000 passengers.

Note that flight data reflects final-destination on a booked journey, we cannot account for instances where two separate tickets were purchased.

Data from Kamran Khan, Isaac Bogoch, Alexander Watts, Oliver Pybus, Moritz Kraemer

2021-01-20T14:18:19.647399 image/svg+xml Matplotlib v3.3.3, https://matplotlib.org/

Table 2 | Reported B.1.1.7 imports.

Country count: 58

Country Earliest report Date local transmission Local transmission Method of surveillance Source
United States of America 2020-12-27 2020-12-27 1 SGTF https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2020/12/29/colorado-reports-first-known-us-case-new-covid-strain-uk/4079697001/ | https://twitter.com/K_G_Andersen/status/1344825028370567169/photo/1
Denmark 2020-11-14 1 community_sequencing https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-55382212
Australia 2020-12-20 0 travellers https://www.dw.com/en/covid-19-more-countries-detect-mutated-uk-coronavirus-variant/a-56009203
United Kingdom 2020-09-20 2020-09-20 1 community_sequencing https://virological.org/t/preliminary-genomic-characterisation-of-an-emergent-sars-cov-2-lineage-in-the-uk-defined-by-a-novel-set-of-spike-mutations/563
Turkey 2021-01-01 0 travellers https://www.cnnturk.com/video/turkiye/son-dakika-haberi-bakan-koca-acikladi-15-kiside-mutasyonlu-virus-ingiltereden-girisler-tamamen-durduruldu-video
Belgium 2020-12-20 2021-01-12 1 https://www.brusselstimes.com/news/belgium-all-news/146288/netherlands-bans-flights-from-uk-over-new-covid-mutation-found-coronavirus-van-ranst-who/
Canada 2020-12-26 2020-12-26 1 https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-confirms-first-cases-covid19-uk-variant-1.5855361
Chile 2020-12-22 2021-01-13 1 travellers https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-health-coronavirus-britain-variants-f/chile-records-first-case-of-british-variant-of-coronavirus-health-ministry-idUSKBN2931CS & https://twitter.com/Tele13_Radio/status/1349452813760389123?s=20
China 2020-12-04 2021-01-19 1 community_sequencing https://www.bjnews.com.cn/detail/161113300215924.html | http://weekly.chinacdc.cn/en/article/doi/10.46234/ccdcw2020.270 | https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202101/1211644.shtml
Finland 2020-12-28 0 travellers https://yle.fi/uutiset/osasto/news/new_uk_variant_covid_strain_detected_in_finland/11716211
France 2020-12-19 2021-01-06 1 https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/12/26/france-confirms-first-case-of-new-coronavirus-variant | https://cnnphilippines.com/news/2021/1/6/Hong-Kong-detects-UK-COVID-19-variant-from-Manila-outbound-passenger-.html
Germany 2020-11-27 2020-11-27 1 travellers https://www.ms.niedersachsen.de/startseite/service_kontakt/presseinformationen/variante-des-corona-virus-aus-grossbritannien-erstmals-in-niedersachsen-nachgewiesen-195841.html
Iceland 2020-12-21 0 travellers https://icelandmonitor.mbl.is/news/news/2020/12/30/eleven_recent_cases_of_british_variant_of_coronavir/
India 2020-12-18 0 travellers https://www.republicworld.com/india-news/general-news/maharashtra-8-patients-detected-with-uk-variant-of-covid-19-5-from-mumbai.html
Ireland 2020-12-25 2020-12-29 1 travellers https://www.independent.ie/world-news/coronavirus/new-uk-variant-of-covid-19-confirmed-in-ireland-while-1025-new-cases-and-two-further-deaths-confirmed-39900087.html | https://www.thejournal.ie/uk-strain-coronavirus-b117-ireland-third-wave-5314440-Jan2021/
Israel 2020-12-23 2021-01-01 1 https://www.timesofisrael.com/health-officials-fear-mutant-strain-spreading-as-they-examine-dozens-of-tests/ | https://menafn.com/1101373506/Mutant-COVID-19-variant-affects-18-more-people-in-Israel&source=30
Italy 2020-12-20 2020-12-23 1 https://news.sky.com/story/covid-19-new-strain-found-in-denmark-netherlands-and-australia-says-who-12169262 | https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/italy-detects-new-case-of-coronavirus-variant/2086553
Japan 2020-12-25 0 travellers https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/dec/25/japan-reports-cases-coronavirus-variant-spreading-across-uk
Jordan 2020-12-27 0 travellers https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-12-jordan-coronavirus-variant-cases-minister.html
Lebanon 2020-12-21 0 travellers https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/12/26/france-confirms-first-case-of-new-coronavirus-variant
Malta 2020-12-19 0 travellers https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/uk-covid-19-variant-detected-in-malta.841925
Netherlands 2020-12-20 2020-12-28 1 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-55382212 | https://www.rivm.nl/en/news/spread-of-uk-coronavirus-variant-in-netherlands
Norway 2020-12-27 0 travellers https://news.sky.com/story/covid-19-france-discovers-its-first-case-of-the-new-coronavirus-variant-after-frenchman-travelled-from-london-12172620
Pakistan 2020-12-29 0 travellers https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/first-confirmed-case-of-new-covid-19-strain-detected-in-pakistan/story-TFLSMYU6WRJ8yToNQfIeyJ.html
Portugal 2020-12-27 2020-12-28 1 travellers https://www.sapo.pt/noticias/atualidade/covid-19-nova-estirpe-e-recente-em-portugal-e_5ff221926def8e5d02b29e94;https://www.portugalresident.com/madeira-registers-first-18-cases-of-new-covid-variant-one-from-lisbon-area/
Singapore 2020-12-23 0 travellers https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/singapore-confirms-1-imported-patient-with-potentially-more-contagious-covid-19-strain
South Korea 2020-12-22 0 travellers https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9091763/S-Korea-accelerate-virus-vaccine-efforts-U-K-variant-detected.html
Spain 2020-12-26 2021-01-08 1 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/dec/26/spain-and-sweden-report-cases-of-uk-covid-variant
Sweden 2020-12-20 0 https://www.svt.se/nyheter/lokalt/sormland/fall-av-den-brittiska-virusvarianten-upptack-i-sormland
Taiwan 2020-12-30 0 travellers https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3115884/taiwan-reports-its-first-case-mutant-covid-19-strain-found
United Arab Emirates 2020-12-29 0 travellers https://www.khaleejtimes.com/coronavirus-pandemic/new-covid-strain-in-uae-all-we-know-so-far
Switzerland 2020-12-24 2021-01-05 1 https://www.bag.admin.ch/bag/fr/home/das-bag/aktuell/medienmitteilungen.msg-id-81829.html | https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/more-variant-covid-19-carriers-detected-in-switzerland/46262070
Brazil 2020-12-21 2021-01-18 1 SGTF https://www.dropbox.com/s/y99g4uw6s7za01c/CADDE%20genomic%20report%2031%20Dec%202020.pdf?dl=0
Vietnam 2020-12-24 0 travellers https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/01/02/vietnam-reports-first-case-new-coronavirus-variant-woman-returning/
Luxembourg 2020-12-29 0 travellers https://covid19.public.lu/fr/actualite-covid-19/communiques/2021/01/02-covid-variante.html
New Zealand 2020-12-25 0 travellers https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/433973/covid-19-update-19-new-imported-cases-in-past-three-days
Hong Kong 2020-12-23 0 travellers https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-hongkong/uk-coronavirus-variant-likely-found-in-hong-kong-as-city-secures-vaccine-supplies-idUKKBN28X1E1
Cyprus 2020-12-20 0 travellers https://cyprus-mail.com/2021/01/03/coronavirus-new-fast-spreading-british-strain-found-in-cyprus/
Thailand 2021-01-03 0 travellers https://www.thestar.com.my/aseanplus/aseanplus-news/2021/01/03/thailand-finds-new-strain-of-covid-19-from-uk-in-four-britons
Greece 2021-01-03 0 travellers https://www.keeptalkinggreece.com/2021/01/03/covid19-mutated-strain-greece-travelers-uk/#.X_IT0OugNCg.twitter
Jamaica 2020-12-21 0 travellers https://www.thestkittsnevisobserver.com/new-corona-strain-arrives-in-jamaica-on-last-uk-flight/
Austria 2021-01-04 0 https://www.sn.at/panorama/wissen/live-corona-mutationen-sind-in-oesterreich-angekommen-97891537
Iran 2021-01-05 0 travellers https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/iran-finds-first-case-of-new-virus-variant-in-traveler-from-uk-654329
Philippines 2020-12-22 https://cnnphilippines.com/news/2021/1/6/Hong-Kong-detects-UK-COVID-19-variant-from-Manila-outbound-passenger-.html
Oman 2021-01-05 0 travellers https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-oman-idUSKBN29A1G9
Romania 2021-01-08 2021-01-08 1 community_sequencing https://www.barrons.com/news/romania-confirms-first-case-of-new-uk-virus-strain-01610126705?tesla=y
Slovakia 2021-01-05 2021-01-05 1 community_sequencing https://spectator.sme.sk/c/22567045/new-strain-of-coronavirus-from-the-uk-confirmed-in-slovakia.html
Russia 2021-01-10 0 travellers https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-confirms-first-case-of-new-coronavirus-strain/31041057.html
Mexico 2020-12-29 0 travellers https://www.vallartadaily.com/new-coronavirus-strain-first-seen-in-britain-confirmed-in-mexico/
Ecuador 2021-01-06 0 travellers https://www.aa.com.tr/en/americas/ecuador-records-first-case-of-new-coronavirus-variant/2106621
Sri Lanka 2021-01-02 GISAID
Malaysia 2020-12-28 0 travellers https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2021/01/11/uk-variant-of-covid-19-has-reached-malaysia-dr-noor-hisham-confirms/1939483
Czech Republic 2021-01-01 GISAIDTravellerToGermanyEPI_ISL_824943
Hungary 2021-01-07 2021-01-07 1 community_sequencing GISAID
Argentina 2021-01-15 0 travellers https://t.co/kSxRa78t6z?amp=1
Ghana 2021-01-18 0 travellers https://twitter.com/gordon_awandare/status/1351235484085846019
Peru 2020-12-31 2020-12-31 1 community_sequencing https://www.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-peru/peru-confirms-case-of-british-variant-of-coronavirus-idUSL1N2JJ26C
Morocco 2021-01-18 0 travellers https://www.dailysabah.com/world/mid-east/morocco-detects-1st-case-of-uk-coronavirus-variant-bans-flights

Table 3 | Raw data for figures in the report.

Country Earliest sequence Number of variant sequences Total sequences since first variant sequence
United Kingdom 2020-09-20 20832 107306
Portugal 2020-11-09 73 484
Germany 2020-11-30 12 343
Hong Kong 2020-12-07 3 13
Brazil 2020-12-21 5 29
Netherlands 2020-11-29 95 1339
Italy 2020-12-14 82 467
Finland 2020-12-18 40 42
Oman 2020-12-22 1 2
Switzerland 2020-12-18 24 1061
Sweden 2020-12-20 15 166
United States Of America 2020-12-18 85 3218
Australia 2020-11-30 31 339
Singapore 2020-12-08 18 145
Lebanon 2020-12-22 1 1
France 2020-12-13 26 200
Denmark 2020-11-09 318 19938
Belgium 2020-11-30 83 494
Mexico 2020-12-31 1 1
New Zealand 2020-12-16 17 45
Romania 2021-01-04 1 1
Greece 2020-12-30 4 6
Spain 2020-12-14 70 256
Norway 2020-12-09 20 134
Ecuador 2021-01-05 4 5
India 2020-12-22 20 73
Israel 2020-12-16 89 533
Turkey 2020-12-24 21 37
Canada 2020-12-15 1 14
Hungary 2021-01-07 5 5
Iceland 2020-12-02 21 356
Ireland 2020-12-17 80 162
South Korea 2020-12-22 3 5
Luxembourg 2020-12-24 3 91
Jamaica 2020-12-21 4 5
Pakistan 2020-12-25 2 4
Sri Lanka 2021-01-02 1 2
Slovakia 2020-12-28 22 24
Peru 2020-12-31 1 1
Iran 2021-01-08 1 1
Argentina 2020-12-21 1 2